New work: What's another word for 'waiting?'

Hi, kids! Today, “When” is our Word Of The Day. When will we get a handle on the coronavirus infection rate? When will my kids be able to go back to school? It’s like being suspended.

Nobody’s done anything wrong, but the kids are essentially banished from school.

You could even say remote learning is supposed to cushion us from spikes in the COVID-19 infection rates, like a suspension system reduces the impact of outside shocks.

Now that we’ve settled into a “class time” routine, my kids are doing okay and I’ve carved out enough studio time for a new collage. At first, “Suspension” was going to show the teacher, students and the schoolhouse right-side-up.

Lisa Myers Bulmash, “Suspension,” collage on paper

But flipping the image captures the surreal nature of school in the Upside-Down more accurately. I’m still working on a way to visualize my kids’ isolation in a new way, though. I think they (and I) are getting out of the habit of being around people who don’t live with them. Which brings us back to the word of the day: When will they hang out with their friends again, without having to be pried out of our house?

Survivor: Back-to-school edition

You'd think after seven back-to-school seasons that I'd have the kids and myself ready to go. 

You would be wrong. On the upside, most everyone else at TwoBoo's school was still figuring things out too. The place is so new they literally haven't removed the painter's tape yet.

No surprise the back-to-school chaos was like twice as intense. 

Fortunately, the madness provided great cover for our disorganization at home. For example, I bought TwoBoo's school supplies well in advance, but forgot to put them into his backpack and so left them at home. I blame TwoBoo: at bedtime before the first day of school, he launched a two-hour, post-shower tantrum. So next morning, we were all exhausted.

Not even flash photography woke up TwoBoo that morning. ©Lisa Myers Bulmash

Thank goodness TwoBoo's teacher was on it. She even had apples waiting for each kid at their respective desks.

The only one (sort of) not affected was The Boy. Everyone else was losing their heads, but he was so together he actually had time for pleasure reading before catching the bus.

Someday I will be ready for the start of the school. Probably when the playground grass sprouts, in the spring.

Getting schooled

How can you feel like you have too much homework when you're not even in school anymore?

Lots of firsts at our house:

• The Boy started his first year of middle school
• TwoBoo started first grade
• I'm no longer driving anyone to a day care center -- for the first time in ten years

Every trip is taking maybe ten minutes more because I keep missing turns. Both schools sent home stacks of paperwork for ME to fill out. And my job, that art thing?

I'm up to my ears in meetings about art. Applications about art exhibitions. Other computer-related stuff about art. Art stuff, but not making art. Which is sometimes part of the job.

Art business consultant Alyson Stanfield has some useful suggestions on how to deal with overwhelm, which I really need to work on this month. So I'm going to spend a long weekend in planning mode... and somehow, making something.